A group of women gather for a nurse-in in Montreal, Quebec. A new study investigates the symbolic meaning behind infant feeding choices.

Photographed by:John Kenney / THE GAZETTE, Postmedia News

“Invented in the mid-1800s as a last-ditch option for orphans and underweight babies, packaged infant formula has since been perfected to be a complete and reliable source of stress and shame for mothers.” ~ Tina Fey

When is a baby bottle more than just a baby bottle? Millions of new moms who choose formula-feeding will tell you the answer is: whenever other women are watching you use it.

Although the choice to breastfeed, or not, has been analyzed from more angles than Megan Fox’s face, the symbolic meaning attached to infant-feeding decisions has been largely overlooked. A new study rectifies that by investigating the ways in which related consumer products – everything from breast pumps to cans of formula – help first-time moms construct a particular image of themselves as parents.

“It’s more than just the act of breastfeeding or formula-feeding; it’s about the various needs that are being met, aside from the inherent need of the baby being fed,” said Sara Afflerback, the Journal of Consumer Culture study’s lead author. “Women are negotiating their self-image as mothers through infant feeding choices.”

She notes, for example, that women who formula-feed their babies might compensate for the associated cultural taboos by buying an organic blend, which they perceive as healthier, or opting for the brand of formula used by hospital staff in order to feel like “good mothers.”

Similarly, women who identify with attachment parenting might doggedly pursue breastfeeding in the face of latching challenges because they see the practice as compliant with the image they have of themselves as caregivers.

“These aren’t necessarily inherent needs but rather needs that mothers are constructing for themselves or their child because of interactions with other mothers and authorities in this area,” explained Afflerback, who wrote the study in conjunction with professors at the University of Central Florida.

Among first-time moms who breastfed, formula-fed, or used a combination of the two, Afflerback found the motivations for buying related products were the same: baby-oriented and mother-oriented.

In terms of baby-oriented consumerism, women acted based on what they felt was best for their child in terms of comfort, taste, development and health. In terms of mother-oriented consumerism, products were chosen because they met a personal desire for knowledge or control, compliance with the experts, convenience, frugality, relationships and self-image.

For example, a mother might choose to breastfeed because she feels it’s best for her child’s health but also because it’s a free source of nourishment that facilitates bonding with baby. Conversely, a mother who chooses to formula-feed might do so because her baby gains more weight while on it, as well as because of its perceived convenience.

Afflerback also found that certain developmental phases were seen by mothers as both facilitated and reflected by certain consumer items. That is, a youngster can only be at “the sippy-cup stage” in a society in which sippy cups are readily available.

Ultimately, Afflerback concludes that purchases and decisions around infant feeding help signal the ways in which mothers are navigating “risk society” – characterized by concerns about food safety and vulnerability – as well as the zeitgeist of “intensive mothering,” wherein women feel the sole burden of responsibility for their child’s well-being.